Losing His Daughter
by Gardener
Summary: It hurts just as much the second time. AU


A/N: italics are Jake's internal monologue.

Duncan ran up to his father and tugged on his arm. "Dad, have you—"

"Duncan, can't you see I'm in the middle of a conversation?" Jake began to turn back to his guest.

"Dad!" Duncan was not quite screaming. "Have you seen Mr. Echolls?"

"No, I haven't," Jake Kane said curtly. "Why? What is so important that you have to be so—"

"It was him! Not me!"

"What?" Jake was white as a sheet, his guests forgotten.

"Veronica was here, she found tapes—"

"She was here? When? What tapes?"

"She found tapes of Lilly with Aaron. She just left to take them to her father. She told me to make sure Aaron didn't leave, but I can't find him…." At this point, Duncan was talking to the air. His father was already halfway out the door.

Jake sped down the road in his car. He knew the route Veronica would take away from his house. If Aaron had followed her, he might still be in time.

_Hang on, Veronica. I'm coming._

He slammed on the brakes when he saw Veronica's convertible wrapped around a telephone pole, barely more than a minute's drive from his house. His heart was thundering against the inside of his chest. As he leapt from his car, he could see that the LeBaron was empty, its doors open. Off the road to the right there was a driveway leading up to a house. As he ran up the slope, he could hear voices.

"Veronica, you're an odd duck. How many teenage girls keep walkie-talkies in their car?"

"What have you done to me?"

"Veronica dear, where are my tapes?"

"Aaron!" shouted Jake. He saw Aaron sitting on top of an overturned refrigerator talking in to a walkie-talkie. Although he had heard Veronica's voice coming from Aaron's walkie-talkie, Jake could not see her anywhere. "I'll kill you Aaron!"

Shock registered on Aaron's face as he saw Jake charging toward him. Jack tackled him, and the two men tumbled over the fridge, grappling with one another. Jake landed face down with Aaron on top of him; Aaron put him in a headlock.

_You killed Lilly, you bastard! You're going to pay._

With a grunt, Jake staggered to his feet, Aaron's arm still encircling his neck from behind. Jake bent forward, lifting Aaron off his feet and onto Jake's back. Jake charged toward the side of the house, turning at the last moment to slam Aaron against the wall, breaking Aaron's hold. Aaron groaned, but rebounded off the wall with a left hook to the side of Jake's head. Jake rocked back on his heels, his vision swimming.

_Man he's strong._

Aaron followed up with another left hook. Jake staggered backward, darkness closing in around the edges of his gaze.

_Of course he's strong. He makes action movies. You sit at a desk all day. You've go to be smarter._

Jake danced backward, out of Aaron's reach.

_Or at least be taller._

Jake kept moving, taking advantage of his greater height and reach to jab at Aaron while staying outside Aaron's range. The two men circled each other. Jake landed several punches to Aaron's face, but Aaron was able to shrug them off.

_I can't let him win. Why was I so stupid? I had plenty of security at the party. What made me think I should go after him alone?_

Jake was slowing, breathing hard, practically gasping for air. Aaron was tired, but visibly less so.

_That doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if you're out of shape. She's counting on you to save her. If you don't do it, no one else will._

Out of the corner of his eye, Aaron noticed a way to overcome Jake's advantage in reach. He leapt back and picked up a crutch that had been left out on the porch with all the other junk. He jumped forward again, swinging it at Jake.

Jake barely dodged backward in time. Aaron swung again, and this time came so close that the crutch actually clicked against one of the buttons on Jake's jacket. Desperately, Jake stuck his hand off to the side and grabbed a glass vase that had been left on the railing of the porch, and tossed it at Aaron's head. Jake's arm was tired, and the throw was neither particularly accurate nor especially fast, and Aaron was able to dodge. He swung at Jake again.

The vase had, however, bought Jake enough time to scoot back out of Aaron's range, and this time, in an effort to reach Jake, Aaron had overbalanced.

_Now. I've got to finish this now._

With his hands outstretched, Jake rushed forward, charging inside the arc of Aaron's swing before Aaron could right himself. Jake got his hands around Aaron's throat. Jake's momentum carried him forward faster than Aaron could stagger back, and he fell backwards, dragging Jake down with him. Jake kept his grip on Aaron's neck, and kneeled on Aaron's arms to keep him from struggling.

_You killed Lilly? Do you think I'd let you kill Veronica too?_

Jake squeezed as tightly as he could. He could feel Aaron's pulse beneath his fingers, could feel Aaron struggling to breathe.

_How many of my daughters do you think I'd let you take from me?_

Aaron's face was now a deep purple. His tongue lolled out of his mouth, and his eyes were swelling almost out of their sockets.

_Yes. Die you son of a bitch._

Aaron stopped moving. Jake felt Aaron's pulse slow and then stop altogether. Finally, Jake smelled the stench of excrement and urine as Aaron's bowels released. Jake squeezed for another minute just to be sure.

"Mr. Kane? Mr. Kane?" Veronica called out, banging her fist against the inside of her prison. The noises coming from outside had stopped, and she had no idea what had happened. Suddenly the fridge was thrown open, and light and fresh air rushed in on her.

Before she could get up, Jake had swept her up into his arms and was hugging her against him. "Don't worry, honey," Jake cooed softly, "he won't you or anyone else ever again. Daddy's here. Daddy's got you."

Tears were running down Veronica's face, her whole body was shaking with sobs. When she heard what Jake had said though, she gently pushed him away from her. "Mr. Kane, there's something I have to tell you. You saved—I owe you my life, but I have to tell you—I'm not, you're not my father. My dad had a paternity test done, I'm his daughter not…." Veronica trailed off. Jake was backing away from her, his face pale and wan. His mouth was moving, but no sound came out.

Finally he spoke. "No, that—that can't be. That's not true, you're not…." Jake doubled over, crying. He curled up in a fetal position, rocking back and forth. "My daughter, my daughter," he said over an over again. "I can't lose you too. My daughter…."

_It's not fair. I won. I stopped him. I made it this time, I saved you. I already lost Lilly, I can't lose you too. My daughter, my daughter_...

The end.


End file.
